Up at 5am

Dear Margot,
It is not everyday that I have to wake up at 5 am absolutely jovial. I flipped out of bed faster than I had ever done in my entire life. The alarm clock rang loud and clear in the silence of the night in my room and like a flash, I lept out of bed like never before. I got changed, washed my face, grabbed my rod and fishing gear and headed out into the darkness.

Flagging a taxi was a piece of cake. There seemed to be billions of them driving around looking for a fare to earn a wee bit more money before returning the cab.

THe journey to the fishing ground was rather uneventful. The taxi driver was not chatty. He was very quiet and drove like the wind. Perhaps it was because there were few people on the road at such an early hour.

Mike and I rigged up our gear and I made the privilage or making the first cast of the trip. I started witha small popper fly. It seemed todraw no attention from the fish so i decided to change fly and use a baitfish imitation which had worked time and time again for me at many locations.

In the darkness (about 645), I barely was able to make out where the fish were and where it was safe to stand. I do not know how but I managed to see a large crusing saratoga. I dug out one of the two dhalberg divers which are large surface flies tied using feathers and deer hair. I estimated that the fish was about 60 feet away and I made one false cast and shot the line out and got the Dhalberg six feet in front of the fish. I popped the fly once and the creature exploded jumping as it savaged my fly. I saw the line being ripped from the surface and the line on the floor speed through the guides like a shotgun bullet. I held the fly line in my right hand to set the hool and the fish took to the air. The hook was firmly embedded in the fish's jaw and i watched in utter shock as the fly line rip from the water surface as the fish went on its first mad dash. The fight was exciting as it was a battle of wit and skill. I was more skilled than the fish and so managed to bring it to my feet where it struggled and tried to dislodge the obnoctious object inbetween its upper and lower jaw. A few jumps later, it came to my hand and i picked up the fish to have a good look at it. I think it must have been at least 70cm long. A humongous size for a gorgeous green arowana. Conincedentally, this arowana is the first that I landed on my 9weight and the first green arowana I have every caught. The hook came out very easily as arowanas have a boney mouth so it is extremely hard to set the hook in an arowana's mouth. It is estacitc to see the fly being engulfed by such a huge fish. To land it and be able to hold the fish to have a good look is such wonderful feeling that words cannot describe it.

Fishing to me is a way to unwind after a difficult term at school and I think I truly deserve this trip because I worked hard during term and produced some nice grades (much like my arowana). It is very late now and I have to sleep now or else I will be unable to wake up for church tomorrow. Good night.

Yours,
An Ren